LONDON (AFP) - Princess Diana addressed her last boyfriend as "darling Dodi" in letters thanking him for a holiday on his yacht and sending him her fathers cufflinks as a present, her inquest in London heard Friday.
In one letter she also referred to herself as a "chick."
Diana died alongside Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul in a high-speed car crash in Paris in August 1997. The High Court has previously heard that Fayed bought Diana an expensive engagement ring hours before the smash.
Lawyers for Al-Fayed, who owns Harrods department store in London, say the letters show that the couple were in a serious relationship, despite claims by several Diana confidantes that it was more casual.
In one letter, the former wife of heir to the throne Prince Charles thanks "darling Dodi" for a six-day holiday on his yacht, adding: "This comes with all the love in the world and as always a million heartfelt thanks for bringing such joy into this chicks life."
In another, she writes: "Darling Dodi, these cufflinks were the very last gift from the man I loved most in the world, my father.
"They are given to you as I know how much joy it would give him to know they were in such safe and special hands. Fondest love, Diana."
But under questioning from Al-Fayeds lawyer Michael Mansfield, Rosa Monckton, a friend of Diana, played down the seriousness of the relationship, which she admitted she did not approve of.
Monckton said that Diana "tended to speak and write in an extravagant way" and that any ring which he gave her "was going firmly on her right hand".
She said Diana would have still been in a relationship with heart surgeon Hasnat Khan had he not ended their relationship because he was uncomfortable in the limelight.
"She told me Hasnat would never have her back once the photographs of her with Dodi had appeared and she was very upset about it," Monckton told the inquest.
The inquest also heard from model Kelly Fisher, who dated Fayed in 1996 and told the court he showered her with gifts including a Cartier watch and gold cigarette lighter.
He also started to propose marriage repeatedly a few months after they met.
Asked if she reacted positively to the proposals, she said: "No, I didnt. I mean, I was in love with him at the time but I thought it was sort of strange as it was only a few months."
